Obituary of Burt Dougan

Burt “Doogie” Dougan
May 4, 1949 – May 21, 2021

Dad left us for peace and comfort on May 21, 2021 at Parkridge Centre in Saskatoon, SK.

Dad is survived by his two sons, Aaron (Jihye) and Kerry (Stacey); four granddaughters, Victoria, Lina, Grace and Lucy; sister, Alice; brother, Richard (Laurie); brother-in-law, Arnold; and sister-in-law, Marguerite. He was predeceased by his parents, Eugenie Anna Marie and William Burton; sisters, Marion and Kathleen (Lloyd); and brothers, Fred (Nancy), Gerry (Ileene), Tony and Donny.

Dad was born and raised in Saskatoon, SK and was the youngest of 12 siblings. He began his career as a cook in his mid-teens and worked his way up to head chef and kitchen manager at a number of restaurants and hotels across Saskatchewan and Alberta (as well as earned his journeyperson certificate in the trade). He was also a cook at the Battlefords Union Hospital for many years and ran a busy catering business on the side (Dougan’s Catering & Rent-A-Chef), until a workplace injury ended his career early. He was a damn good cook and everyone loved his food. One of our favourite dishes of his, and there were many, was his curry chicken.

Dad was quite involved in politics and was a proud and lifelong member of the Liberal Party. He volunteered on many local provincial and federal election campaigns and even once let his name stand as a Liberal candidate in the 1991 provincial election. He was also a member of the Knights of Columbus.

Dad loved spending as much time as possible at the family cabin at Emma Lake. It was by far his favourite place to be. He would sit on the deck all day long in awe of the scenic view of the lake. Dad always had an ample supply of frozen margarita to serve up and he dubbed the cabin “Burt’s Margaritaville,” where every hour was happy hour. Dad also loved the mountains and always looked forward to his annual Thanksgiving long-weekend trip to Calgary for a big turkey feast with family and friends.

Dad enjoyed playing cards (particularly when money was involved), watching sci-fi, history and western TV and movies, reading (particularly Louis L’Amour books), swimming, travelling and collecting coins and old paper money. He also enjoyed telling stories, often intertwining fiction with fact.

Dad was loving, caring, kind, generous, non-judgmental and resourceful. He was a good dad, a very proud grandfather and always there for us when we needed him.

Dad suffered a debilitating stroke in July 2020 that significantly changed his life, but he was strong and gave us close to another year to share with him and create memories, despite his limitations and constant battle with pain and discomfort.

We love you, Dad, and will miss you a lot.

A private celebration of Dad’s life will be held at a later date.